Drum closing ring assembly



June 3, 1969 05mm. 3,447,825

DRUM CLOSING RING ASSEMBLY Filed May 27, 1968 Sheet of s [1114M IIIIIII I I'IIII I INVENTOR ass/2,? awra/v/ BY zz w ATTORNEYS June 3, 1969 c. SANTONI 3,447,825

DRUM CLOSING RING ASSEMBLY Filed May 27, 1968 FIG. 4 7|- W INVENTOR CES/M SA/VTO/V/ BY ATTORNEYS June 3, 1969 C. SANTONI DRUM CLOSING RING ASSEMBLY Sheet Filed May 27, 1968 INVENTOR 656W? 64/1 7040 I A I s g\ l ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,447,825 DRUM CLOSING RING ASSEMBLY Cesar Santoni, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, assignor to The Greif Bros. Cooperage Corporation, Delaware, Ohio, a corporation of Delaware Filed May 27, 1968, Ser. No. 732,417 Int. Cl. B65d 45/32 U.S. Cl. 292256.67 17 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Background of the invention This invention relates to an improved drum and top closure assembly and more particularly to an improved closing ring for releaseably retaining a cover or head on the drum.

My invention is particularly applicable to many forms of drums such as drums made of sheet metal such as steel or aluminum and drums made of convolutely wound laminated layers of fibrous sheet material and composite drums of combinations of such materials, as for example, an outer shell of fiber and an inner layer of sheet metal. Drums of this type may, of course, be coated with a plastic or resin on the inner surface or may be provided with suitable resin or plastic liners.

Dmms are commonly used to ship various materials, particularly raw materials and chemicals in bulk. These materials are often in powdered or liquid form and it is important for safety, health and economical reasons to prevent loss of these materials through leakage or sifting. In this connection, the covers or heads of such containers are generally made of sheet metal and are provided with a peripheral flange which overlaps the chime around the upper open end of the container. A split closing ring is applied around the assembled cover and container and is provided with a locking mechanism which constricts the clamping ring around the assembly to releaseably secure the cover in place.

Several problems have arisen, however, with the use of closing rings securing the covers of steel drums and the like; For instance, when a cover is secured on the drum using presently available closing rings, a wire seal is generally applied to the ring at the closing point to indicate whether the drum has been opened before use. According to this type of closing ring in combination with steel drum type containers, the sealing means project beyond the ring closure thus fully exposing the seal and increasing the possibility of cutting, rupturing or otherwise damaging the seal when the drum is rolled. In addition, closing rings currently in use frequently cut the sealing wire on sharp edges and, because of the location of the seal, cause breakage or otherwise damage the seal when the drum is dropped or rolled. Presently known closing rings are also ditficult to lock into place because the locking means utilized follows the curved of the ring thus causing great difficulty in rapidly and easily executing ring closure and locking during the sealing operation following drum filling.

Although many attempts were made to overcome the foregoing and other difliculties, none was entirely successful when carried into practice commercially on an industrial scale.

3,447,825 Patented June 3, 1969 An object of this invention is to provide an improved ring closing assembly for drums and the like which minimizes the possibility of breaking the seal due to handling of the drum.

Another object is a sealing means of the type which is located in a recessed position beneath the closure utilizing a passageway which minimizes the chance of premature breakage due to sharp edges and corners.

A further object is to provide a ring closing assembly which is so constructed that the locking means is easily inserted into position in a straight through fashion whereby the ring closing assembly may be easily locked in place.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the description which follows.

Brief summary In accordance with the invention, an improved closing ring assembly for use in releaseably securing the cover of a drum of the type in which the upper surface of the upper chime is overlapped by a peripheral flange of the cover which presents a rounded shoulder forming an upwardly facing first cam surface. The container has a rounded shoulder in its outer surface spaced downwardly a short distance beneath the top of the chime and defines a downwardly facing second cam surface. The closing ring assembly comprises a split ring formed of a slightly flexible material of sufiicient length so that it tightly encompasses the container chime with the cover in place. A pair of lugs are located adjacent the ends of the ring and extend downwardly therefrom, and the lugs are provided with a passageway in the downwardly extending part. Locking means are also included for insertion into these passageways of the lugs. The lugs are cocked or tilted inwardly toward the center of the ring at a slight angle so that the lug passageways are aligned thereby permitting straight through insertion of the locking means. The lugs are provided with a pair of eyelets positioned beneath the lugs, and preferably attached to the bottom of the lugs, to accommodate the sealing means which can be swung under the lugs to prevent premature breakage of the seal. The eyelets are provided with a smooth passage free from sharp corners and edges which could result in damage to the seal. The eyelet openings are formed by a smooth bore and then counter-sunk or grooved on each side to eliminate sharp edges which may cut the wire when the wire is drawn tightly for seal installation.

The sealing means for insertion through the eyelets can be a wire having a deformable lead disc or tab permanently attached to one end leaving the other end of the Wire free to pass through the eyelets and be inserted into the lead disc or tab which can then be permanently deformed with a hand tool to provide a seal.

The locking means comprises a bolt and nut and the nut may conveniently be included within the lug passageway having the larger diameter. However, the ring could also be closed if the nut is located so that it engages the bolt outside the lug passageways.

Another feature of this invention includes a smaller diameter in the lug into which the bolt or locking means is first inserted. The smaller diameter prevents the head (e.g. round, hexagon, or square shaped) of the bolt or other locking means from being drawn into the lug passageway when the ring is tightened around the chime. This arrangement makes it unnecessary to use a washer at the base of the head of the bolt.

FIGURE 1 is an exploded view showing the upper portion of a drum and also the cover and closing ring in spaced superimposed relationship ready to be assembled with each other;

FIGURE 2 is an elevational view of the assembled cover and closing ring;

FIGURE 3 is a top plan view showing the closing ring assembly in position;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged elevational view of the split ring part of the closing ring assembly shown partly in section;

FIGURE is a sectional view taken along the line 5-5;

FIGURE 6 is a sectional view taken along the line 66;

FIGURE 7 is a sectional view taken along the line 7-7; and

FIGURE 8 is a sectional view taken along the line 8-8.

Referring now to the drawings, the container 2 is provided with a cover 3 and split closing ring 4 incorporating the teaching of this invention. The split closing ring assembly includes a pair of lugs 5 and 6 located adjacent the ends of the ring and extending downwardly. The lugs may conveniently be welded to the ring. The lugs are provided with passageways 13 and 14 through which locking bolt 7 is inserted. Passageway 13 can have a smaller diameter than passageway 14 in order to prevent the hexagon-shaped head 8 of locking bolt 7 from being drawn into the passageway 13 when the closing ring assembly is tightened around the chime. Passageway 141 includes therein a nut composed of a partially internally threaded sleeve with a collar for engaging locking bolt 7 to close the ring assembly tightly on the drum cover. Extending downwardly from lugs 5 and 6 are eyelets 12 and 9 which have smooth passageways which have been counter-sunk to prevent the formation of sharp edges which could break sealing wire 10 when the drum is handled. The sealing arrangement consists of a deformable disc or tab 11 which is permanently formed on one end of wire 10 while the other end of the wire is threaded through eyelets 12 and 9 and back through tab 11. Tab 11 is permanently sealed to the wire by deforming it with a hand tool. Lugs 5 and 6 are each cocked inwardly toward the center of the ring at a slight angle a. This offset or cocked angle of lugs 5 and 6 is conveniently provided in order that locking bolt 7 can be installed in a straight line (indicated by b in FIGURE 6). Thus, the cocked angle of the lugs causes locking bolt 7 to be self-aligning when it is inserted into lug passageways 13 and 14. This permits threading of the bolt 7 into the nut where the nut is attached or inserted on the inside of lug 6.

Head 8 of locking bolt 7 is slightly larger than passageway 13, as shown in FIGURE 7, to prevent head 8 from being drawn into the passageway when the locking bolt is inserted to close the ring.

The recessed position of the tab-sealing means 10 and 11 is illustrated in FIGURE 8 wherein the tab is swung beneath the lugs and locking bolt and adjacent the container wall. In the recessed position, the: seal will be ensured against premature breakage due to dropping of the container or rolling of the container on its side.

In using the ring closing assembly in accordance with my invention, the cover is first applied to the open end of the drum or container, the closing ring is then assembled around the chime and cover portion while the locking mechanism is in open position. Thereafter, the locking mechanism is locked generally by power equipment to contract the closing ring causing the flanges of the closing ring to engage the upper and lower end surfaces of the cover.

It will be seen that the closing ring exerts a resilient compressive force to hold the cover in sealing engagement with the chime or with a gasket formed around the chime, thus leaking or sifting of the container contents between the cover and the chime is minimized or eliminated. It will also be seen that the closing ring provides an improved reinforced structure that can withstand the forces and impacts normally encountered during shipping or storage.

4 What is claimed is: 1. An improved closing ring assembly for use in releaseably securing a cover on a drum of the type in which the upper surface of the container chime is overlapped by a peripheral flange of the cover which presents an upwardly facing rounded shoulder forming an upwardly facing first cam surface, said container having a rounded shoulder in its outer surface spaced downwardly a short distance beneath the top of the chime and forming a downwardly facing second cam surface, said closing ring assembly comprising: a split ring formed of a slightly flexible material of suflicient length so that it can tightly encompass the top of the drum with the cover in place; a pair of lugs located adjacent the ends of the ring and extending downwardly therefrom, each of said lugs provided with a passageway in the downwardly extending part; locking means for insertion into the passageways of the lugs; said lugs being cocked inwardly toward the center of the ring at a slight angle so that the lug passageways are aligned thereby permitting straight through insertion of the locking means.

2. A closing ring assembly in accordance with claim 1 wherein the lugs are provided with a pair of oppositely disposed eyelets positioned below the lugs to accommodate a sealing means which, after sealing, can be moved to a recessed position to prevent premature breakage of the seal.

3. A closing ring assembly in accordance with claim 2 wherein the eyelets are attached to the bottom of the lugs.

4. A closing ring assembly in accordance with claim 3 wherein the eyelets are provided with a smooth passageway free from sharp corners and edges which could result in damage to the seal.

5. A closing ring assembly in accordance with claim 4 including a sealing means which comprises a wire loop for insertion through the eyelets, said wire provided with a deformable tab portion for sealing the ends of the wire loop.

6. A closing ring assembly in accordance with claim 5 wherein the locking means comprise a bolt and nut.

7. A closing ring assembly in accordance with claim 6 with the bolt inserted through the lug passageways and into engagement with the nut.

8. A closing ring assembly in accordance with claim 7 wherein the lug passageway through which the bolt is first inserted has a smaller diameter than the other lug passageway to prevent the head of the locking bolt from being drawn into the lug passageway when the ring is tightened around the chime.

9. A closing ring assembly in accordance with claim 8 wherein the engaged nut is located inside the lug passageway with the larger diameter.

10. A closing ring assembly in accordance with claim 8 wherein the engaged nut is located outside the lugs.

11. In combination with the closing ring assembly in accordance with claim 9 wherein the drum is of the type in which the upper surface of the container chime is overlapped by a peripheral flange of the cover which presents an upwardly facing rounded shoulder forming an upwardly facing first cam surface, said container having a rounded shoulder in its outer surface spaced downwardly a short distance beneath the top of the chime and forming a downwardly facing second cam surface.

12. In combination, a container body having an open end with a chime formed therearound and also having a downwardly facing rounded shoulder formed around its exterior a short distance beneath the top of the chime to provide a downwardly facing cam surface; a cover removably applied to the open end of the container and having a peripheral flange with an upwardly rounded shoulder overlapping the top of the chime and forming an upwardly facing cam surface; and a split closing ring formed of a slightly flexible material of sufiicient length so that it can tightly encompass the container chime with the cover in place; a pair of lugs located adjacent the ends of the ring and extending downwardly therefrom, said lugs provided with a passageway in the downwardly extending part; locking means inserted through the passageways of the lugs; said lugs being cocked inwardly toward the center of the ring at a slight angle so that the lug passageways are aligned thereby permitting straight through insertion of the locking means; a pair of oppositely disposed eyelets positioned below the lugs to accommodate a sealing means; and a sealing means which comprises a wire loop for insertion through the eyelets, said wire provided with a deformable tab portion for sealing the ends of the wire loop, whereby when the seal is moved to a recessed position beneath the lugs, the container may be rolled during handling Without the danger of prematurely breaking the seal.

13. A closing ring assembly in accordance with claim 12 wherein the eyelets are provided with a smooth passage free from sharp corners and edges which could result in damage to the seal.

14. A closing ring assembly in accordance with claim 13 wherein the locking means comprise a bolt and nut.

15. A closing ring assembly in accordance with claim 14 wherein the lug passageway through which the bolt is first inserted has a smaller diameter than the other lug passageway to prevent the head of the bolt from being drawn into the lug passageway when the ring is tightened around the chime.

16. A closing ring assembly in accordance with claim 15 wherein the nut is located inside the lug passageway with the larger diameter.

17. A closing ring assembly in accordance with claim 15 wherein the nut is located outside the lugs.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS GEORGE T. HALL, Primary Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R. 

